I sang a little while and then flew on.

either you're on the bus or off the bus. if you don't like it please move along, thanks. there's lots of us who dig this stuff. what a great fucking show! i was there and it changed my life.

This show seems to be taking some heat for being a bit sloppy/mailed-in, whatever denigration folks seem to want to hurl. For my money, this is one of the better first sets of the tour -- so many others from this year seem rote.
The second set does seem a bit short -- at least in terms of song count. But it clocks in at a solid 95 minutes, so were seeing some nice, adventurous jamming here. Aside from "Looks Like Rain" this set is a nice visit back to 1969, with a fanstastic "Morning Dew" capping things off.
Sound-wise, this one is near perfect. Phil really shines through on this one, better than on many SBD recordings from this era.
All in all, the negativity is pretty mucg unwarranted here. One of the mor einteresting shows of 1990, IMO.

Strange show. Help on the Way> Slipknot! is really good.
Franklin's onward is a bit flat. There's a milli-second miscue to introduce Franklin's Tower, and Phil pretty well disappears from the mix, and the band goes a bit limp.
Not a badly played show, but that X-factor seems to be missing. A hint arrives when Phil asserts himself a little during the China Cat jam, the drummers go double time, and the music starts to sizzle some.
The feeling deepens during Terrapin, and there is no hesitation in the air at this point. Lady with a Fan is nailed. The second half is competently performed. Jerry hints at Playin' in the Band at the introduction to the pre-drumz exploration.
The laughing at the end of the Drums and the beginning of Space are really intense. Perfect Halloween music to scare the neighbors with.
Other One>Dew is something you just have to set aside some time to experience.
Strange that the bookends of this show can be so great, yet the heart of the concert seems to represent an entirely different evening of music.

I know this show gets knocked for some sloppy, end of tour playing, but they were the last shows w/ Brent's calliope, carnival B-3 adding what we were never able to get back from the Band ever again. This version of H>S>F is one of MY favorites. The emotion and uncertainty that oozes from this one--especially in the Help on the Way and Slipknot lends itself to a unique, shaky, yet still powerful-if not just plain DARK rendition of this tune. With what transpired over the next week---I believe we heard what the Band as a whole were feeling, on this one. Hot summertime, MIDI soaked Dead at it's finest.

I was 16 years old and playing the junior tennis circuit. I snuck out of my coaches house in Indy and attended the show. My coach found out about it and made me run all afternoon the next day -- it was worth it. From that point until Jerry's passing, catching the next dead show was all I could think about. Caught 21 shows over the next few years. Not a road warrior like many out there, but a nice chapter in my life.

This is probably my least favorite show of the tour. I am sure it must have been an amazing experience. It's always been talked about so favorably by so many people.
Just based on the music - I am not that excited by it. I think the 19th was quite a bit better. This is at the bottom of the summer barrel. I even enjoy the Raleigh show more.

Wow. After seeing both shows I would never guess that anyone would rate that Deal as average or below. Also, no recording can do justice to the sound at DC for those shows (in my humble opinion).

'think we were all,including the band,gettin'a little haggard durin'this point of the tour.Things were not quite takin off as they should...thats cool...have a smoke,take in the sights...it was hot that day...thick air.then peggy-o......just something about this version.jerry was into it.almost time traveled to the civil war...thick air...our group on the hill had a great time...more sights and sounds...we all agreed that mornin dew was intense and really cut through...deer creek was a nice place in see them...sorry to say...the tour never really got its MOJO back after buffalo...will u marry me...i'll set your cities free...

I think this show is ok. I was there for both shows, and if you had asked me which night i liked better at the time i would have said this one, but that was the drugs talkin. Since then I've listened to the second night hundreds of times, and this one maybe twice.

This show has some sloppy points, but it smokes! The SBD is great quality. The set list is great. I liked this show better than 7/19. The boys smoked at Buffalo on 7/16 and this show is just below that one.

Sweet! Much improved sound over previously available "SBD"!!

I actually think that this show has a great setlist, but the playing was rather sloppy. The next night was MUCH better..cm

7-19 may well have been one of the strongest shows from the summer run. I remember thinking that both shows that summer were powerhouse performances So as soon as I saw a new SBD source I went off and wrote the reviews from my warped 15 year old memories. After listening to 7-18 I was not at all impressed very sloppy Jerry and Brent both sound haggard. The cassidy never really takes off. The Deal is average. China-Rider is garbage. Weak LLR. From Terrapin on the show is slightly Better.